Laurel Canyon - a short book review

I just finished reading “Laurel Canyon; The Inside Story of Rock and Roll's Legendary Neighborhood," by Michael Walker. Loved it – it’s about the very open (‘60’s – ‘70’s neighborhood of southern California’s nascent folk-rock and rock and roll scene. It’s where Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash lived together while he wrote “Our House.” Fascinating how Mama Cass Elliot schemed to get Nash, Crosby and Stills to sing and play together for the first time at her place in the canyon. Canyonite Frank Zappa lived in the old Tom Mix cabin. Chris Hillman and Roger McGuinn of the Byrds. Great photos by Henry Diltz and commentary by album cover designer Gary Burden! Find out how unknown artists (Elton!) got their US starts at near-by venues on the strip like Doug Weston’s Troubadour, the Whiskey a Go-go, and the Kaleidoscope. Plus the GTO’s (not cars), the songs, the bands, the British visitors at the Riot House, and those heady times. A fun and quick read for fellow rockologists!